[UPDATE] Hitchcock's Children collection date extended to June 30, 2012

Although children and youth appear in a great number of Alfred Hitchcock's films, they are rarely the focus of critical attention. This collection seeks to remedy that oversight and aims to add to the rich and varied tradition of Hitchcock scholarship. Many of the children and youth that appear in Hitchcock films are background or minor characters, yet they often hold special importance. From The Young and Innocent (1931), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Strangers on a Train (1951), The Trouble With Harry(1955), and The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) to The Birds (1963) and Marnie (1964) children and youth perform both innocence and knowingness (and so much more) within Hitchcock's complex cinematic texts. Though the child often plays a small part in Hitchcock's films, their significance, both symbolically and philosophically, offers a unique opportunity to illuminate and interrogate the child presence.

Contributor's are invited to submit critical and/or theoretical examinations of the children/youth characters from any Alfred Hitchcock film, from his early silent's up to his later films. For the collection's focus, children are defined as birth to age 12, while youth are defined as teenagers age 13 to 17.